PM Narendra Modi tweeted that he would make a
stop-over in Lahore. He is expected to spend a couple of hours in Pakistan with
Nawaz Sharif. In an announcement made on Twitter that surprised many,PM
Narendra Modi said he would make a stop-over in Lahore in Pakistan on his way
back from Kabul.He added that he would meet Pakistan Premier Nawaz Sharif, who
is incidentally celebrating his birthday on December 25.

External Affairs Minister Sushma
Swaraj commended the move, calling it ‘statesman-like.’This will be the
first visit by PM Modi to Pakistan after he was voted to power last
year.Sharif had made his visit to India last year when he attended PM Modi’s
swearing-in ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan in New Delhi. Both leaders have
conducted several meetings on the sidelines of summits and conferences in
foreign countries.

The relations between India and Pakistan have
witnessed some positive developments after a chill lasting several months.
The two countries recently decided to launch a comprehensive dialogue after PM
Modi and Sharif met on the sidelines of the Paris climate change conference.

Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj had earlier met
Sharif in Islamabad at the Heart of Asia conference.PM Modi had landed
earlier today in Kabul where he held talks with President Ashraf Ghani and
inaugurated the new Parliament building. He had also made a visit to Moscow
where he held comprehensive discussions with President Vladimir Putin and inked
several deals.Modi is
the first Indian Prime Minister to visit Pakistan since 2004. Tensions between the two
nuclear-armed neighbours have been high in recent years but relations have
begun to warm.The pair met briefly in Paris last month on the sidelines of the
COP21 climate change conference.